Air conditioners for household use for providing air conditioning to indoor spaces have been known in the past. It is well known that many of such air conditioners have an air purifying function.
For example, JP-A-2003-65593 discloses a room air conditioner of the so-called “wall type” having an air purifying function. This air conditioner is provided, in its casing, with an air passageway through which air to be treated flows. In the air passageway are disposed a corona discharge part for decomposition of airborne odorous and harmful components (hereinafter referred to as the “component to be processed”), and a heat exchanger for conditioning of air. The corona discharge part includes a pair of electrodes and a power supply for application of pulse voltage of several KV to both the electrodes.
Upon introduction of air to be treated into the casing by operation of an air blower, the thus introduced air passes through the corona discharge part. In the corona discharge part, the voltage has been applied to both the electrodes and corona discharge is taking place between the electrodes. This consequently produces, in the corona discharge part, a radical or the like used for decomposition of the component to be processed present in the air, in other words the airborne component is decomposed by the radical. The thus purified air is conditioned in temperature to a predetermined level in the heat exchanger, thereafter being supplied through an outlet opening into an indoor space.